Meets expectations...provided you have the right ones

Rating: 10/10 (4 March 2014)

It seems viewers are split on this movie - some loved it, others see nothing but its shortcomings. I find it depends a lot of your expectations, and maybe even the viewer's age, to a certain extent.
The folks that hate this movie seemed to have gone in expecting a Transformers-like experience; a special effects extravaganza where every fight becomes a whirling dervish of quick attacks and lethal weaponry. This is not that movie. If you're hoping to see monsters and robots fight it out MMA-style; you're going to be disappointed. If you're going in expecting to experience a story rooted in science and logic; you'll also be disappointed.
This is not that movie.
The best way I've found to describe this movie is a live action anime flick from the 1980s; think Battle of the Planets meets Power Rangers.
There is no logical reason for giant robots with plasma cannons and missile launchers to jeopardize themselves and the world by insisting on fighting the monsters hand-to-hand; only resorting to weaponry when their defeat seems imminent. The reason they fight hand-to-hand is because it's just so much cooler on-screen than watching a weapon platform launch projectiles from a safe distance.
There is also no logical reason why the worlds' governments would waste all their resources building giant walking robots when those exact same plasma and missile weapons could easily be mounted on ships and tanks instead. Again, the only reason to do so is because it looks cool to have them mounted on giant, anthropomorphic robots. And no-one can argue that the fights in this movie aren't extremely cool to watch.
If you're the type of viewer who can check their brain at the door and accept a few gaps in logic in favour of awesome visuals, then I can't recommend this movie enough. The action is intense and continuous, the sound design and soundtrack are amazing, and the visual effects are incredibly effective. If you can afford the additional cost of a 3D blu-ray player and the appropriate disc, you have the ingredients to a fun movie night. Just be sure to watch it with like-minded individuals.